Springwork.



No. 788,596. PATENTED FEB. 28, 1905. J. A. STAPLES.

SPRINGWORK."

APPLIOATION FILED AP1L26I 1004.

ltlniarnn Stains iiiatentecl February 293, 1905,

nner Urethra JOHN A. STAPLES, OF NEWBURGH, NEW YORK, ASSlU-NOR TO S'lr-KPLES & HANFORD COh IPANY, OF NEWBURGH, NEW YORK, A (JUltPUlt/lilUN OF NET/V JERSEY.

enninewonk.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 783,596, dated February 2%, 1905.

Application filed April 26, 1904. Serial No. 205,084.

Be it known that l, Jenn A. STAPLES, a citizen of the United States, residing at New burgh, in the county of Orange and State of 5 New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Springwork, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to wire structures; and the object of the invention is to provide TO a construction in which a rod or wire may be readily sprung into engagement with oppo site sides of a frame or other suitable associated part and which is so organized that when the rod or wire is in position it has a 1 5 torsional resistance to disengagement from the frame.

The invention consists in the novel construction and organization of parts hereinafter described, and pointed out in the appended 20 claims.

In order to illustrate a use and application, I here show and describe the invention as applied to springwork for bed-bottoms, couches, and other articles of furniture.

lln the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and Which illus trate one exemplification of the invention, Figure 1. is a top plan View of a section of springwork made in accordance with my in- 3 vention, a portion of the figure being broken away and parts being omitted in order to facilitate the illustration of the invention. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 E2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3

is a side elevation, on an enlarged scale, of one 3 5 of the spring-supports. Fig. 4 is a detail plan view showing one end of the support in engagement with the frame. Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5 5 of Fig. i. Fig. 6 is a detail plan view showing the position of the hook in 4- attaching the support to the frame, and Fig. 7 is a sectional View on the line 7 7 of Fig. 6.

In the class of springwork illustrated the frame 10 is usually composed of a border-wire and is of a size and shape corresponding to the completed article of furniture. In springing up the frame or mounting the springs 11 thereon the springs 11 are carried or sustained by supports 12, which are preferably in the form of longitudinally and transversely dis- 1 posed wires connected or attached at their 5 ends to the frame, these supports being at such distance apart as is suitable or necessary for the character of the structure being made. The springs 11 are usually arranged in rows or banks and attached or secured to the supports in any suitable manner, as by providing the supports with bends or corrugations adapted to receive the lower ends of the springs and whereby the springs may be seated and sustained at the crossing-points of the supports by interweaving their lower coils with the wires as shown and in a manner now well understood in the art. The tops of thesprings are then connected and braced (not shown) in any preferred manner to complete tht structurc. In the present exemplification of my invention the frame is in the form. of a border-wire and the Slfi'lllg-SUIHJOI'ES are in the form of wires. The support at each end is provided with an integral grip consisting of a 7 rebent end, which in the present embodiment of the invention takes the form of an angular or laterally inclining hook l3, providii'ig a seat for the border-wire. The end 1% of the hook or coil when the parts are assembled extends upwardly within or back of the border-wire far enough to form, n'eferably, a substantially complete convolution or to a point above the center of the associated border-wire, and this end terminates a distance from the sup port greater than the thickness of the borderwire, as clearly shown in Fig. 4:. The books or coils at the opposite ends of each support are inclined or bent reversely to each other and extend laterally in opposite directions or 5 upon opposite sides of the support, as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

In assembling or setting up the springwork the spring-support is turned from the normal position of Fig. 3, so that the hook at one end 9 occupies a position similar to that shown in Figs. 6 and 7, when the said hook may be slipped over the bordenwire at one side or end of the structure, the borderavire seating itself in the hook, as seen in dotted lines in 9 5 said figures. The support is then partially rotated in such direction as to cause the end 1 of the coil or book to move up back of the of the support is then twisted or rotated in 1 border-wire and into the position shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The hook at the opposite end the same direction given the support to engage the first hook, as in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 6, by any suitable means, as by a pair .of pliers, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6. This rotation of the free hook is resisted by the support, owing to the opposite attached end, and results in putting the support under tension or torsion. The free hook is rotated far enough to bring its end into a substantially horizontal position below the line of the border-wire, as shown in Fig. 7, and the adjacent stretch of the border-wire having been moved inwardly far enough to clear the end of the hook it is permitted to slip into the seat of such hook, as shown in dotted lines in Figs. 6 and 7. Vt'hen this hook is released, owing to the torsion of the support the end of the hook springs up into the position shown in Figs. 4: and 5. It is obvious that the parts can become disengaged only by twisting or rotating the ends of the wire or rod, and as such movement is opposed by the torsional resistance of the material of the rod or wire it will require a positive and considerable application of force to effect this movement. By reason of this construction the rod or wire is readily assembled on the parallel associated parts and is securely held against accidental disengagement therefrom. The supports having been assembled with the border-wire the springs are then interwoven at their lower reduced ends with the supports at the intersection or crossing-points of the latter, and the structure may then be completed by connecting up and bracing the tops of the springs in the usual or any preferred manner. As thus constructed, when the springsupport is in assembled position outward movement of the border-wire is prevented by the rear side of the hook, while inward movement is resisted by the end let of the hook or coil, which extends upward far enough to prevent the border-wire from riding up out of the seat of the hook even under great pressure. The parts may be readily attached by unskilled workmen, obviating the necessity of using solder, or bending the ends about the frame, or of employing independent or separate clips or connections, and may be manufactured in suitable sizes and shipped separately or in knockdown form to furniture and upholstery factories or jobbers unprovided with facilities for making the metal-work. 4

In some instances it may be desirable to have the connecting rod or wire under torsion when in its normal position in engagement with the associated parallel wires at its opposite ends in order to more securely lock or grip the parts together. In such organization the frictional engagement of the connecting rod or wire with the associated parts is increased,

whereby not only is the accidental disengagement of this wire more surely prevented, but its movement or displacement longitudinally of or along its associated wires or frame is prevented. This feature is accomplished by the laterally-inclined books at the ends of the connecting wire being arrested by contact with the under surface of the associated wires or frame before reaching the initial position from which they were rotated or twisted for the purpose of engaging therewith. The hooks at the opposite ends of the support are therefore under constant torsion due to the distortion of the hooks from their position A before the support is assembled with the bordisplacement and disengagement of the parts are impossible. WVhile I prefer a form in which there shall normally be torsion in the support when both ends are engaged, in order the more securely to lock or grip the parts together, it is obvious that, as described, the parts may be so related as to provide for this torsional ,strain or resistance occurring only when the supports tend to move out of their normal positions. In other words, the supports may be under torsion only when twisting their ends in assembling or disassembling them.

It is obvious that various changes and modilications in the construction are within the scope of my invention. For example, the frame may be of any suitable material and shape or form, and the supports themselves may be in any other suitable form or of any other suitable material, while the springs obviously maybe connected thereto in any suitable manner.

The supports preferably are madeof wire and with ahook at each end; but any suitable form of support with connections for attachment to the adjacent frame may be employed; also, one end may be provided with one form of connection and the other with any other suitable form.

As before stated, I have shown and described my invention as applied to and used in springwork for furniture in order to disclose a suitable use therefor; but it is obvious that the interlocking connecting and associated wires may be utilized in other lines of industry, such as in making screens, fences, and many other wire structures.

The invention contemplates a knockdown wire structure in which the parts may be readily snapped into place and will hold by the torsional resistance of the wire.

Having described my invention, I claim- 1. In a wire structure, the combination with a pair of parallel wires, of a connecting-wire teases having oppositely-directed hooks at its ends engaging the parallel wires and one of which hooks is adapted to be sprung into engagement with its associated parallel wire against the tersion of the connecting-wire.

2. In a wire structure, the combination with a pair of parallel wires, of a connecting-wire engaging the parallel wires at its ends and held from disengagement therefrom by the torsional resistance or the connecting-wire.

3. In a wire structure, the combination with a pair of parallel wires, of a connecting-wire engaging the parallel Wires at its ends and under the torsion of its intermediate portion.

4. In a device of the class described, the combination with a frame, of a connectingwire having end grips engaging the frame at opposite points and held against displacement by the torsional resistance of the connectingwire.

5. In a device of the class described, the combination with a frame, of a connectingwire having hooks receiving the frame at opposite points and held from displacement therewith by the torsion of the connectingwire.

In a device of the class described, the combination with a frame, of a connectingwire having reversely-arranged hooks receiving the frame at opposite points and held from displacement therewith by the torsion of the connecting-wire.

7. In a device of the class described, the combination with a frame, of a spring-support having reversely-arranged hooks receiving the frame at opposite points and held in engagement therewith by the torsion of the sup port, the end of each hook extending back of the border wire.

8. In a device of the class described, the combination with a frame, of a spring-support having reversely-arranged hooks receiving the frame at opposite points and held in engz'igement therewith by the torsion of the support, the end of each hook extending back 01 the frame and spaced therefrom a distance at least as great as the thickness of the framewire.

9. In a device of the class described, the combination with a border-wire, of springsupports having grips receiving the borderwire and held in engagement therewith by the torsion of the supports, and springs carried by the supports.

10. In a device of the class described, the combination with a border-Wire, of spring supports having hooks receiving the borderwire at opposite points and held in engagement therewith by the torsion of the supports, and springs carried by the supports.

11. In a device of the class described, the combination with a border-wire, o'li' longitudinal and transverse spring-supports having inwardly-extending hooks receiving the border-wire at opposite points, the ends of the hooks being inclined laterally in opposite directions, and springs carried by the supports at the crossingmints of the latter.

12. In a device of the class described, the combination with a border-wire, of longitudinal and transverse corrugated spring-supports having hooks receiving the border-wire and being held in torsional engagement therewith, the ends of the hooks of each support being bent laterally in opposite directions and extending behind the bordernvire, and springs carried by and interwoven with the supports at the crossing-points of the latter.

13. In a device of the class described, the combination with a border-wire, of a connecting-wire having end hooks engaging the border-wire at opposite points and acting in opposition to each other to prevent disengage ment of the connecting-wire from the borderwire.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN A. STAPLES.

Witnesses:

ALEX. I). DAn'aAon, C. II. HAN'ronD. 

